The Battle of Gettysburg

Gettysburg was the bloodiest battle of the entire Civil War with over 50,000 casualties combined. It was fought on July 1-3, 1863, and it was a pivotal moment in the civil war, which changed everything about the momentum of the war. It is considered a turning point because the Union had not won many battles at all, so it boosted morale greatly and also showed that the North could go on the defensive. Lee lost almost 1/3 of his remaining army after the war, meaning that the North outnumbered his forces even more now. The South's plan had a critical flaw as well, and that came in the form of General Pickett. Pickett decided to speed things up by hastily making a massive cavalry assault on the heavily fortified Union lines, and he was completely dominated by the Union. It was not even a close fight, and it became known as Pickett's Charge. The battle, which was a Union victory, engaged over 160,000 men in it, 90,000 union and 70,000 confederate, was possibly the biggest of all time. It was caused by the heightened spirits of the southern army due to many wins that they had picked up, and it led ultimately to the defeat of the south due to its heavy losses. After the battle, Lincoln issued the Gettysburg address and the battlefield became a cemetery.




For a bigger look at the four thoughts for Gettysburg, click the following link, right HERE

http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/gettysburg.html?tab=facts














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